Question

Antennae in housefly performs the function of?

Answer 1

Hint: The housefly belongs to the suborder Cyclorrhapha. It is the foremost fly species found in houses. Adults are grey to black with four dark and longitudinal lines on the thorax, slightly hairy bodies, and a single pair of membranous wings. They have red eyes, which are set far apart within the slightly larger female.

Complete answer:
The house fly is 6 to 7 mm long, and the female is usually larger than the male. The female can be differentiated from the male by the relatively wide space between the eyes i.e in females the eyes are farther apart (in males, the eyes almost touch). It has a head, thorax and abdomen. The head of the adult fly has reddish eyes and sponge-like mouthparts. The thorax bears four narrow black stripes.

The head of the fly contains the following parts
- Eyes
- Antennae
- Mouthparts

The antennae provide flies with their primary source of the smell and seem to be different between males and females. Antennae vary widely in form but are always made of one or more jointed segments. While they are typically sensory organs in the houseflies, the exact nature of what they sense and how they sense it is not the same in all groups of arthropods. Functions of the antennae are sensing touch, air motion, heat, vibration (sound), and especially smell or taste which is present in most of them.

Note: The house fly has a complete metamorphosis with a distinct egg, larval also called maggot, pupal and adult stages. Warm summer conditions are generally optimal for the development of the house fly and under those conditions it can complete its life cycle in as little as seven to ten days.